Glycemic index for 60+ foods

Content extracted from Website: https://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/glycemic-index-and-glycemic-load-for-100-foods

Glycemic index for 60+ foods

Measuring carbohydrate effects can help glucose management

Updated: March 14, 2018

The glycemic index is a value assigned to foods based on how slowly or how quickly those foods cause increases in blood glucose levels. Also known as "blood sugar," blood glucose levels above normal are toxic and can cause blindness, kidney failure, or increase cardiovascular risk. Foods low on the glycemic index (GI) scale tend to release glucose slowly and steadily. Foods high on the glycemic index release glucose rapidly. Low GI foods tend to foster weight loss, while foods high on the GI scale help with energy recovery after exercise, or to offset hypo- (or insufficient) glycemia. Long-distance runners would tend to favor foods high on the glycemic index, while people with pre- or full-blown diabetes would need to concentrate on low GI foods. Why? People with type 1 diabetes and even some with type 2 can't produce sufficient quantities of insulin—which helps process blood sugar—which means they are likely to have an excess of blood glucose. The slow and steady release of glucose in low-glycemic foods is helpful in keeping blood glucose under control.

To help you understand how the foods you are eating might impact your blood glucose level, here is an abbreviated chart of the glycemic index for more than 60 common foods. A more complete glycemix index chart can be found in the link below.

FOOD	Glycemic index (glucose = 100)
HIGH-CARBOHYDRATE FOODS
White wheat bread*	75 ± 2
Whole wheat/whole meal bread	74 ± 2
Specialty grain bread	53 ± 2
Unleavened wheat bread	70 ± 5
Wheat roti	62 ± 3
Chapatti	52 ± 4
Corn tortilla	46 ± 4
White rice, boiled*	73 ± 4
Brown rice, boiled	68 ± 4
Barley	28 ± 2
Sweet corn	52 ± 5
Spaghetti, white	49 ± 2
Spaghetti, whole meal	48 ± 5
Rice noodles†	53 ± 7
Udon noodles	55 ± 7
Couscous†	65 ± 4
BREAKFAST CEREALS
Cornflakes	81 ± 6
Wheat flake biscuits	69 ± 2
Porridge, rolled oats	55 ± 2
Instant oat porridge	79 ± 3
Rice porridge/congee	78 ± 9
Millet porridge	67 ± 5
Muesli	57 ± 2
FRUIT AND FRUIT PRODUCTS
Apple, raw†	36 ± 2
Orange, raw†	43 ± 3
Banana, raw†	51 ± 3
Pineapple, raw	59 ± 8
Mango, raw†	51 ± 5
Watermelon, raw	76 ± 4
Dates, raw	42 ± 4
Peaches, canned†	43 ± 5
Strawberry jam/jelly	49 ± 3
Apple juice	41 ± 2
Orange juice	50 ± 2
VEGETABLES
Potato, boiled	78 ± 4
Potato, instant mash	87 ± 3
Potato, french fries	63 ± 5
Carrots, boiled	39 ± 4
Sweet potato, boiled	63 ± 6
Pumpkin, boiled	64 ± 7
Plantain/green banana	55 ± 6
Taro, boiled	53 ± 2
Vegetable soup	48 ± 5
DAIRY PRODUCTS AND ALTERNATIVES
Milk, full fat	39 ± 3
Milk, skim	37 ± 4
Ice cream	51 ± 3
Yogurt, fruit	41 ± 2
Soy milk	34 ± 4
Rice milk	86 ± 7
LEGUMES
Chickpeas	28 ± 9
Kidney beans	24 ± 4
Lentils	32 ± 5
Soya beans	16 ± 1
SNACK PRODUCTS
Chocolate	40 ± 3
Popcorn	65 ± 5
Potato crisps	56 ± 3
Soft drink/soda	59 ± 3
Rice crackers/crisps	87 ± 2
SUGARS
Fructose	15 ± 4
Sucrose	65 ± 4
Glucose	103 ± 3
Honey	61 ± 3
Data are means ± SEM. * Low-GI varieties were also identified. † Average of all available data.

The complete list of the glycemic index and glycemic load for more than 1,000 foods can be found in the article "International tables of glycemic index and glycemic load values: 2008" by Fiona S. Atkinson, Kaye Foster-Powell, and Jennie C. Brand-Miller in the December 2008 issue of Diabetes Care, Vol. 31, number 12, pages 2281-2283.

To get the lowdown on glycemic index and glycemic load, read more about it here.

American Diabetes Association, 2008. Copyright and all rights reserved. This chart has been used with the permission of American Diabetes Association.

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